Mexican gray wolves slowly gaining ground in forests

The Mexican gray wolf population is continuing to stabilize with the recent releases of two pairs in the Blue Range Wolf Recovery Area in the Gila and Apache National Forests.

The first male-female pair was released on April 2; the second pair, on April 9.

An Interagency Field Team will be monitoring the wolves and, if necessary, provide supplemental food while they acclimate to the area and transition to catching native prey in the Mexican Wolf Blue Range Reintroduction Area.

The Interagency Field Team is responsible for the day-to-day management of the Mexican wolf population. Team members said they believe the females are pregnant; the timed releases should allow the wolves to transition to their new territory prior to giving birth to pups.

The two female wolves were selected from the captive breeding population to increase genetic diversity of the wild wolf population. Both males were captured during the annual wolf population survey in January.